ผี
ghost
A native Thai recording for this word is on the way. Please check back soon.
- 1 ghost、spirit
- 2 fictitious、unauthorized、fake
This word primarily refers to a ghost or supernatural spirit. It can describe both frightening apparitions and spirits believed to guard a home or place. In compounds, it can also suggest that something is fictitious, unauthorized, or not what it appears to be.
ghost、spirit
A supernatural being, including the ghost of a dead person and a spirit associated with a home, place, or natural feature. It is not necessarily evil.
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บ้านนี้มีผีไหม bâan níi mii phǐi mǎy Is there a ghost in this house? บ้านนี้มีผีไหม details
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เขาเชื่อเรื่องผี khǎw chʉ̂a rʉ̂aŋ phǐi He believes in ghosts and spirits. เขาเชื่อเรื่องผี details
fictitious、unauthorized、fake
In established compounds, it describes something fictitious, merely nominal, or operating without proper authorization or registration.
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บัญชีผี banchii phǐi a fake account บัญชีผี details
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แท็กซี่ผี thɛ́ksîi phǐi an unauthorized taxi แท็กซี่ผี details
Learning notes
Explanation
The central meaning of ผี is a ghost or supernatural spirit. It covers not only frightening ghosts in everyday stories but also ancestral, territorial, and household spirits in Thai folk belief. A ผี is therefore not always considered evil. The traditional classifier for spirits is ตน, as in ผีหนึ่งตน, “one ghost.” ตัว may also be heard in ordinary conversation. The word also appears in expressions such as ผีพนัน, describing someone possessed by a craving for gambling. These figurative uses are best learned as established compounds rather than treated as a freely productive pattern. ผีเสื้อ means “butterfly” as a complete word; its modern meaning cannot be worked out simply by combining ผี, “ghost,” and เสื้อ, “clothing.”
Usage
It is common in ghost stories, horror movies, and conversations about supposedly haunted houses or places. It also appears when discussing folk beliefs and traditions involving ancestral, territorial, or household spirits. Its figurative use occurs in critical descriptions of fake accounts, organizations with no real operations, and unauthorized services.
Caution
An old use meaning “corpse” is documented, but ศพ is the normal word for a dead body in modern usage. The fictitious or unauthorized sense of ผี occurs mainly in established compounds. It cannot be freely attached to every noun as a general equivalent of “fake.”
Differences from similar words
1 ghost synonyms
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ปีศาจ means a demon or evil monster and clearly presents the being as malevolent. ผี is broader and can refer to either a frightening ghost or a protective spirit.
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วิญญาณ focuses on a soul or spirit as the nonphysical part of a person or living being. ผี more commonly refers to a ghost or supernatural being that may appear to or affect people.
2 fictitious synonyms
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ปลอม is the general word for something fake or counterfeit. ผี is used mainly in established compounds and figuratively suggests that something lacks a real existence or official status.